Numerous technologies have been implemented to measure volumetric and other parameters and characteristics of a fluid flowing within a pipe. A majority of these meters are intrusive to the flow. For instance, vortex meters, orifice plates and differential meters place device directly in the flow. These meters have limited applications that are specific to the kind of fluid flowing through the pipe. Further is some instances the reliability and life of the meter can be greatly reduced, depending on the type of fluid flow. For example, a very abrasive flow may wear down or damage elements of the meter, which are directly exposed to the flow.
Another disadvantage of these in-flow meters is that in order to replace or install the meter, the process or flow loop must be shutdown. This shutdown can be costly and a time-consuming process. Some of these meters can be very large and heavy making the installation process very difficult and some times requiring more than one individual to install.
It would advantageous to have a meter that is small and lightweight that can be clamped onto the outside of the pipe. Such a meter allows the meter to be easily installed and doesn't require the flow process to be shutdown during installation.
This invention provides an apparatus to measure homogeneous and/or non-homogeneous fluids used in industrial systems having various working fluids to determine various parameters of the process fluid, such as the volumetric flow of the fluid, the gas volume fraction, and the size of particle flowing through the fluid.
Here a novel approach to flow measurements is proposed which utilizes a non-intrusive, externally mounted sensing element that requires no moving parts and is highly reliable. This approach is based upon array processing unsteady pressure measurements induced in an array of externally mounted sensors. The array of sensors are attached to a multi-band sensor strap to allow the spacing of the sensors to be set during manufacturing to provide quick installation and accurate spacing of the sensors.